Anthropology Test 1

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anthropology

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the comparative study of human societies and cultures

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holistic

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in anthropology an approach that considers culture, history, language and biology essential to a complete understanding of human society

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society

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a group of people who depend on one another for survival or well-being as well as the relationships among such people, including their status and roles

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culture

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the learned behaviors and symbols that allow people to live in groups. the primary means by which humans adapt to their environments. the way of life characteristics of a particular human society

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cultural anthropology

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the study of human thought, meaning and behavior that is learned rather than genetically transmitted and that is typical of groups of people

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ethnohistory

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description of the cultural past based on written records, interviews and archaeology

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linguistic anthropology

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a branch of linguistics concerned with understanding the histories and migration of those who speak them

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archaeology

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the sub discipline of anthropology that focuses on the reconstruction of past cultures based on their material remains

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prehistoric

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societies for which we have no usable written records

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artifact

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any object made or modified by human beings. generally used to refer to objects made by past cultures

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features

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artifacts that cannot easily be moved, such as ruins of buildings, burials and fire pits

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urban archaeology

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the archaeological investigation of current-day cities

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cultural resource management (CRM)

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the protection and management of archaeological, archival and architectural resources

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biological (or physical) anthropology

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the sub discipline of anthropology that studies people form a biological perspective, focusing primarily on aspects of humankind that are genetically inherited.

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paleoanthropology

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the sub discipline of anthropology concerned with tracing the evolution of humankind in the fossil recored

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human variation

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the sub discipline of anthropology concerned with mapping and explaining physical differences among modern human groups

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primate

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a member of a biological order of mammals that includes human beings, apes and monkeys as well as prosimians

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applied anthropology

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the application of anthropology to the solution of human problems

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indigenous peoples

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groups of people who have occupied a region for a long time and are recognized by other groups as its original inhabitants

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medical anthropology

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the study illness and health across cultures. the application an ethnographc and holistic perspective to the provision of health care services

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forensic anthropology

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the application of biological anthropology to the identification of skeletalized or badly decomposed human remains

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ethnocentrism

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judging other cultures from the perspective of one's own culture. the notion that one's own culture is more beautiful, rational and nearer to perfection than any other

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anomie

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a situation where social or moral norms are confused or entirely absent; often caused by rapid social change

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racism

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the belief that some human populations are superior to others because of inherited, genetically transmitted characteristics

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biopsychological equality

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the notion that all human groups have the same biological and mental capabilities

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cultural relativism

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the notion that a culture should not be judged of evaluated according to the values of another culture.

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emic perspective

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examining society using concepts, categories and distinctions that are meaningful to members of that culture

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etic perspective

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examining society using concepts, categories and rules derived from science;and outsider's perspective, which produces analyses that members of the society being studied may not find meaningful

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multiculturalism

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public policy for managing cultural diversity in multi-ethnic society, officially stressing mutual respect and tolerance for cultural differences within a country's borders

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structural power

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power that organizes and orchestrates the systemic interaction within and among societies, directing economic and political forces on the one hand and ideological forces that shape public ideas, values and beliefs on the other

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hard power

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coercive power that is backed up by economic and military force

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soft power

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pressing others through attraction and persuasion to change their ideas, beliefs and behaviors

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structural violence

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physical and/or psychological harm cause by impersonal, exploitative and unjust social, political and economic status

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Prosimians

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members of a sub-order of primates the prosimii

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Anthropoids

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members of a suborder of primates the anthropoidea

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specialized

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evolved for particular function; usually refers to a specific trait

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primatologists

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scientists who study the evolution, anatomy and behavior of nonhuman primates

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morphology

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the form of anatomical structures; can also refer to the entire organism

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prehensility

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grasping as by the hands and feet of primates

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omnnivorous

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having a diet consisting of many kinds of foods such as plant materials, meat and insects

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diurnal

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active during the day

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stereoscopic vision

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the condition whereby visual images are, to varying degrees, superimposed on one another

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binocular vision

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vision characterized by overlapping visual fields, provided for by forward-facing eyes

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hemispheres

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the two halves of the cerebrum that are connected by a dense mass of fibers

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sensory modalities

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different forms of sensation

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nocturnal

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active during the night

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arboreal

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tree-living; adapted to life in the trees

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adaptive niche

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the entire way of life of an organism: where it lives, what it eats, how it gets food, how it avoids predators and so on

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arboreal hypothesis

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the traditional view that primate characteristics can be explained as a consequence of primate diversification into arboreal habitats

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midline

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an anatomical term referring to a hypothetical line that divides the body into right and left halves

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cusps

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the elevated portions on the chewing surfaces of premolar and molar teeth

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quadrupedal

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using all four limbs to support the body during locomotion

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macaques

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Group of Old World Monkeys comprising several species, including rhesus monkeys

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rhinarium

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the moist, hairless pad at the end of the nose

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ischial callosities

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patches of tough, hard skin on the buttocks of old world monkeys and chimpanzees

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ceropithecidae

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the family designation for all the old world monkeys

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cercopithecines

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the subfamily of old world monkeys that includes baboons, macaques and guenons

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colobines

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the subfamily of old world monkeys that includes the african colobus monkeys and asian langurs

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sexual dimorphism

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differences in physical characteristics between males and females of the same species

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estrus

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period of sexual receptivity in female mammals, correlated with ovulation

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hominoidea

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the formal designation for the superfamily of anthropoids that includes apes and humans

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hylobatidae

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the family designation of the gibbons and siamangs that live in parts of southeast Asia

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pongidae

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the traditional family designation of the great apes

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frugivorous

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having a diet composed primarily of fruit

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knuckle walking

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a form of quadrupedal locomotion used by chimps, baboons and gorillas wherein, the weight of the upper body is supported on the knuckles rather than on the palms of the hands

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natal group

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the group in which animals are born and raised

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natural selection

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the most critical mechanism of evolutionary change, first articulated by charles darwin

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fixity of species

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the notion that species, once created, can never change

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binomial nomenclature

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in taxonomy, the convention established by carolus linnaeus whereby genus and species names are used to refer to species

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taxonomy

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the branch of science concerned with the rules of classifying organisms on the basis of evolutionary relationships

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catastrophism

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the view that the earths geological landscape is the result of violent cataclysmic events

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uniformitarianism

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the theory that the earths features are the result of long term processes that continue to operate in the present as they did in the past

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transmutation

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the change of one species to another

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reproductive success

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the number of offspring an individual produces and rears to reproductive age

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selective pressures

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forces in the environment that influence reproductive success in individuals

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fitness

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pertaining to natural selection, a measure of relative reproductive success of individuals

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deoxyribonucleic acid

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the double-stranded molecule that contains the genetic code

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genome

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the entire genetic makeup of an individual or species

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biological continuity

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refers to a biological continuum that organisms are related through common ancestry and that traits present in one species are also seen to varying degrees in others

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hominid

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colloquial term for members of the family Hominidae, which includes all bipedal hominoids back to the divergence from african great apes

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mosaic evolution

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a pattern of evolution in which the rates of evolution in one functional system vary from those in other systems

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protohominids

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the earliest members of the hominid lineage, as yet only poorly represented in the fossil record

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multidisciplinary

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pertaining to research that involves mutual contributions and cooperation of exerts from various scientific fields

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artifacts

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objects or materials made or modified for use by hominids

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taphonomy

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the study of how bones and other materials came to be buried in the earth and preserved as fossils

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context

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the environmental setting where an archaeological trace is found

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site survey

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the process of discovering the location of archaeological sites

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features

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products of human activity that are usually integral to a site and therefore not portable

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ecofacts

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natural materials that give environmental information about a site

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ethnoarchaeology

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approach used by archaeologists to gain insights into the past by studying contemporary people

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haft

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to equip a tool or implement with a handle or hilt

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experimental archaeology

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research that attempts to replicate ancient technologies and construction procedures to test hypotheses about past events

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stratigraphy

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study of the sequential layering of deposits

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principle of super positioning

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in a stratigraphic sequence, the lower layers were deposited before the upper layers

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stratum

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a single layer of soil or rock

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biostrartigraphy

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a relative dating technique based on regular changes seen in evolving groups of animals as well as presence or absence of particular species

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index fossil

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fossil remains of konwn age, used to estimate the age of the geological stratum in which they are found

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cross dating

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relative dating method that estimates the age of artifacts and features based on their similarities with comparable materials from dated contexts

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seriation

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relative dating method that orders artifacts into a temporal series based on their similar attributes

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home-based foragers

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hominids that hunt, scavenge or collect food and raw materials from the general locality where they habitually live and bring these materials back to some central or home base site to be shared with other members of their co residing group

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Middle pleistocene

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the portion of the pleistocene epoch beginning 780,000 y.a. and ending 125,000 y.a.

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upper pleistocene

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the portion of the pleistocene epoach beginning 125,000 y.a. and ending approximately 10,000 y.a.

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glaciations

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climate intervals when continental ice sheets cover much of the northern continents

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interglacials

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climatic intervals when continental ice sheets are retreating, eventually becoming much reduced in size

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flexed

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the position of the body in a bent orientation, with arms and legs drawn up to the chest

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upper paleolithic

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a cultural period usually associated with modern humans and distinguished by technological innovation in various stone tool industries

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chatelperronian

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pertaining to an upper paleolithic industry found in france and spain, containing blade tools ans associated with neandertals

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mousterian

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pertaining to the stone tool industry associated with neandertals and some modern homosapien groups